Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday 31 January 2018: As part of the celebrations for UAE Innovation Month, which takes place throughout February, the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) has organised a series of unique events and initiatives which aim to showcase the state of cutting edge thinking in the UAE.

The annual showcase, which for the first time this year will last an entire month and which was hugely successful as a week-long event in 2015 and 2016, will not only celebrate the latest in initiatives in the UAE, but will also aim to support the national innovation strategy.

The month of February will see each of the seven emirates allocated a set number of days to present their own innovation-focused initiatives, with Abu Dhabi starting the celebrations from 1st to the 7th, which will include events organised by DCT Abu Dhabi. The focus will then move on to the other six emirates, which will each have the opportunity to showcase their own ideas.

The initiatives will fall in line with the overarching ethos of the festival, which means to contribute to strengthening the country's position as a global hub for leading edge thinking, enhance the development of new ideas and capabilities, and create a widespread culture of innovation in the country.

“Promoting and encouraging innovation in this nation aligns perfectly with the mandate of DCT Abu Dhabi as it strives to position itself as a world-class destination, and seeks to use the latest cutting edge technologies and techniques to do so,” said the Chairman at DCT Abu Dhabi, HE Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak. “Having the opportunity to launch initiatives as part of UAE Innovation Month this year especially takes on even more significance, as it coincides with the ‘Year of Zayed’, which means to celebrate the achievements and ethos of the founder of the UAE, a leader whose values included a keen interest in progression and environmentalism. These two areas make up a significant proportion of the initiatives the Department is launching for this year’s event.”

Abu Dhabi’s initiatives include a ‘Smart Truck’, which will be stationed at Saadiyat Island’s culture centre Manarat Al Saadiyat from the 1st to the 7th February.

The truck will present new ideas in the area of environmental sustainability and will have sections dedicated to Smart Building, Transportation, Sustainability and Renewable Energy and reusing water.

Other initiatives include Robotics Workshops, which will be held at Zayed Library in Al Ain also for the entire first week of the month, a ‘Collaborative Animated DreamScape’ event, at Manarat Al Saadiyat’s Art Studio on 3rd February, an ‘Innovation Workshop’ covering the tourism and culture sector and an ‘Organisational Agility Workshop to Enhance Innovation’ led by HE Dr. Saeed Al Dhaheri, Chairman of Smartworld, which will both be held at Manarat Al Saadiyat’s Theatre on the 6th and 7th February, respectively, and the launch of additional sensory stations during the month of February at Louvre Abu Dhabi.

Beyond Abu Dhabi’s ‘allocated week’ for the festival, the emirate will also launch a Louvre Abu Dhabi exhibition at a ‘Roadside Gallery’. The gallery will be a first for the region, and will transform Sheikh Zayed Road into a temporary museum. Ten large boards displaying masterpieces from the Louvre Abu Dhabi collection will be displayed on the Dubai-Abu Dhabi highway and drivers/passengers listening to Abu Dhabi Media radio stations will automatically hear a 30-second story about each artwork as they approach. This will run for one month from mid-February.

‘Smart Robot Reading Companion’ and a Virtual Reality initiative at Mazyad Mall and Al Bahya Libraries will also be launched as part of Abu Dhabi’s contribution to the month.

UAE Innovation Month is one of the largest celebration of its kind in the world and a consolidated effort by government, the private sector and individuals to help create a widespread culture of creative thinking and problem solving in the UAE.